A Lakehurst man has pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide in connection with a 2025 crash in Toms River that killed a construction worker, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced.

Douglas Smith, 52, pleaded guilty on August 31 before Superior Court Judge Kenneth T. Palmer. Prosecutors said they will seek a 10-year New Jersey State Prison sentence when Smith is sentenced on October 23. The sentence would be subject to the No Early Release Act.

The crash occurred at approximately 1:00 a.m. on July 31, 2025, near Lakewood Road and Raymond Avenue. Toms River Police responding to reports of a pedestrian struck found 50-year-old Allen Adams of Lumberton Township lying in the roadway with serious injuries. He was transported to Community Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

Investigators determined that Adams was working in a construction zone on Lakewood Road, where machinery was operating with flashing amber warning lights, when he was hit by a vehicle driven northbound by Smith.

Police located Smith’s vehicle a short distance north of the crash scene. Authorities said Smith showed signs of impairment and was initially charged with DWI and reckless driving.

A court-authorized blood draw later showed Smith had a blood alcohol concentration of .151, nearly twice New Jersey’s legal limit of .08. Prosecutors said cocaine, fentanyl and methadone were also detected in his system.

Smith was subsequently charged with vehicular homicide on August 28, 2025. He was arrested on September 3 at a Toms River residence by members of the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office and Toms River Police Department.

Smith has remained detained in the Ocean County Jail since his arrest.